


You Got This

by Trammel



Category: Iron Man - Fandom, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Avengers Endgame Spoilers, Gen, Happy Father's Day Tony, If you haven't seen the trailers, Irondad, It's Father's Day in Italy, Parent Tony Stark, Time Travel, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark is a Good Dad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-19
Updated: 2019-03-19
Packaged: 2019-11-24 18:12:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18168464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trammel/pseuds/Trammel
Summary: "Dad, it's me," she said. Then he realized she had Pepper's hair - with stripes of green and purple in it - and his eyes. Oh shit."You're not real," he said to the hallucination.





	You Got This

**Author's Note:**

> For Tony Stark Bingo 2019 - Square R1 - Denial

"…It will always be you."

Tony finished recording his message for Pepper and sat back against the bulkhead. He would close his eyes for just a minute. He wouldn't think about if Pepper would be there to get the message, or if she'd been-

_I'm sorry-_

No! No, dammit. Why couldn't it just end? He couldn't do it. Even if somehow they got back, he couldn't face finding out of Pepper was there, or having to face May and tell her that- that-

"Dad! Dad!"

What the fuck was that? A girl's voice? Great, he was hallucinating now.

He reluctantly opened his eyes to see a teenage girl standing in front of him, surrounded by an orange glow that reminded him of Strange's portals. He looked closer and saw that she was holding the time stone in her hands.

"Dad, it's me," she said. Then he realized she had Pepper's hair - with stripes of green and purple in it - and his eyes. Oh shit.

"You're not real," he said to the hallucination.

"I am real. And I don't got a lotta time, cuz you have to sneak this back into Strange's sanctum."

"I do?"

"Not you - you," she gestured at him. "The you where I am. When I am. Whatever. The you that sent me. You gotta listen. You said to tell you - shit that's weird - anyway, you said to tell you to get up off your ass and get to work. The universe isn't going to save itself."

"You're not real," he said again slowly, trying to convince himself.

"I am real, Dad. Get with it here. Why do you think Strange gave up the time stone? Because you're what's needed. You're the important variable."

Tony shook his head. He couldn't do it.

"I - I can't. He - Peter-"

"God, don't get me started on Peter. He really took the big brother thing too seriously. He's worse than you. Thank god MJ's finally pregnant so he can stop obsessing over me."

"He - what? Peter's ok?"

"Yes. He's great. He's ok, because you got off your ass and helped save the universe."

Tony just shook his head. Why would his brain torture him like this? Why?

"No, it's not, he's not-"

She seemed to take some pity on him, because she sighed and knelt down in front of him. He wanted to touch her but he didn't want to break the spell, wherever this hallucination was coming from. He wanted to hold onto it for a few more moments.

"You know what you always told me when I said I couldn't do something? You said you'd never ever be angry if I couldn't do something. And you never are." She smiled and her smile was so full of Pepper that he wanted to cry. But he was too dehydrated even for tears.

 "But you said," she kept going, "you said if it's something I want to do, you'd ask me to take my time, try again, maybe look at the problem from different angle. Or ask for help. You have help here, don't you?"

"Nebula. But - but - you're not - not real." He wished she was. She seemed so brave and so snarky that she was everything he would have wanted in a daughter. He thought he could feel the heat coming off of her. He so wanted to believe in this beautiful dream.

"Get up you asshole!" She started to sound desperate, realizing she wasn't getting through to him. "Get up! You gotta believe me. There's no time!"

He just shook his head, staring at her.

"Listen. Listen! We fight sometimes but you're a great Dad. You built me a tree house, it was the best. Though Mom said that it can't really be called a tree house if it's not attached to anything. Just floats. And this year, when I got my licence, you built me a car. Said you wanted to make sure I was driving the safest thing out there. And it's actually not completely uncool either. And....and you sang me to sleep every night until I was like 4 or 5. Until Jimmy came along. And maybe even last month when I had the flu and was too weak to kick you out of my room."

"Jimmy?"

"My brother. He's 13 now and so annoying."

Tony must have looked despondent at that, because she seemed to come to a decision. She grabbed his hand - he could feel it! - and pressed the time stone against his palm.

"See for yourself." He felt energy rising from the stone, enveloping him, and then -

_it felt -_

_it_

_it_

_felt like he was flying_

_too fast then -_

_he_

_he_

_he was -_

_He was in the nursery, pacing back and forth with Morgan in his arms. Two month old Morgan who would not stop crying._

_They'd been trading off but Pepper hadn't slept in two days, and Tony ordered her to go to bed. He would figure something out._

_It hadn't worked when Pepper sang; Morgan just kept crying. But he was out of ideas._

_"Try to remember, the kind of September…" He'd named her Morgan Maria Stark after all, it wasn't surprising that the song his mother always sang came to him._

_And, miraculously, after a while, it worked. She quieted down, enraptured by his voice._

_Or just finally worn out. Either way she was finally asleep. He sat down in the armchair next to her bassinette and held her close. He kept singing and holding her…_

_then -_

_flying again -_

_too quickly -_

_and-_

he was back, staring his 16-year old daughter in the face.

"You're - you're real?"

"I'm real." She pulled her hand, and the stone, back, but threw her arms around him.

Oh God, she was real. She was warm and real. So real.

"I love you Dad." She whispered into his ear.

"I love you too," he said, holding her tight.

"I gotta go. You gonna get to work?" She pulled back from his arms, but pushed something into his palm. It wasn't the stone.

He met her eyes and nodded. "I'm gonna try."

This time he saw some of himself in her smile. Then in a flash of orange light she was gone.

Tony took a breath, well, he tried; there wasn't much oxygen left. He looked down at his hand and just stared a moment. It was a bracelet. A tiny beaded bracelet (red and yellow, his colors) with M-O-R-G-A-N spelled out in white beads.

It was there. It was real.

_Look at the problem from a different angle._

He sat another minute, thinking. Yes. Yes, it could work.

Tony pushed himself slowly to his feet.

_Ask for help._

"Nebula!" he called out, his voice weak, but still working.

They would try. He would try. Because that's what he did. And apparently, that's what he'd taught his daughter to do.

**Author's Note:**

> Jimmy's full name is James Edwin Stark... 
> 
> And I'm assuming that MJ decided it was the right time to get pregnant because she was half-way into her term as US Senator ;)


End file.
